By developing the problems of the “I” concept, psychologists opened up new opportunities for analyzing human behavior. If the “I” concept is an information model that regulates behavior, then it is not the same “property” of the body as hair color or lung capacity. It is possible to imagine other models correlated with it. These are the most different modifications of the “I” from real to ideal:
- “cash” “I” (how I see myself now);
- dynamic “I” (what I strive to become);
- possible “I” (what I can, and perhaps have the misfortune to become);
- idealized “I” (as it is pleasant to see oneself);
- fantastic “I” (the height of the possible).
The more ideal the idea of “I” is, the less realistic it is, the more difficult it is to achieve. But the correlation between the improved and real “I” sets the vector of behavior for the individual. A person not only reacts to existing needs, but also builds his behavior taking into account his possible improvement, as well as the danger of becoming worse.
This approach was implemented in the research of K. Levin’s school. Levin belonged to the cohort of Gestalt psychologists (from German Gestalt - image), who proceeded from the fact that when a person perceives surrounding phenomena, holistic images are first created in his psyche, and then individual details are clarified within the framework of these images. Knowledge of the whole precedes knowledge of its parts. Therefore, Gestaltists were ready to interpret the “I”-concept as a holistic “I”-image (or a complete set of them). By analogy with the physical picture, Levin explained human actions by the fact that his mental activity is realized in the field of interaction of internal tendencies that have different strengths. External and internal conditions create precisely this and not another configuration of forces (one is very important, the other less, and precisely in a given state of the field). The resulting “potential difference” determines the “trajectory” of mental movement and ensures the resolution of the existing situational conflict.
A simple and convincing experiment was conducted by F. Hoppe, a student. The subjects were offered a set of cards with different numbers on them, and were told that the number of the card indicated the degree of difficulty of the task written on the back. The subject can take any card. If the answer is correct, the points marked on the card are taken into account; if the answer is incorrect, a zero is given. After answering the first task, the experimenter informs the subject whether the problem was solved correctly or not, and the subject will be able to choose the next card, think, report the results of the reasoning to the experimenter, find out his reaction, etc. But it will be possible to take only a few cards in turn. The subject is in a conflict situation: there is a better chance of solving an easy problem, but you will not get many points for it. A person stands at the crossroads of two strategies: striving for success and avoiding failure. The following is considered normal behavior: if the decision is correct, a person takes on a more complex task, and if the decision is incorrect, he takes on a simpler task. But it turned out that there are quite a few people who are strangely “consistent” in their choice: some, even with success, take an easier task, others, even with failure, choose a more difficult task.
Hoppe called the complexity of the chosen task the level of aspiration of the subject. If a person, with an unsuccessful decision, took the task easier, then this could be explained by changes in the actual mental field. But how can we explain persistence while maintaining a strategy, regardless of success or failure? The idea of having real and ideal goals was put forward. The personality focuses not only on solving the immediate problem (real goal), but also on establishing oneself as a whole (ideal goal). If a person assesses himself as incapable of solving complex problems, then even if the result is successful, he takes the next task easier: and here there is an underestimated level of aspirations. A different picture emerges for those who are outwardly self-confident, but are unconsciously afraid of not being able to cope with the task; then, even if they fail, they choose an even more difficult option. If failure happens again, you can tell yourself: at least I tried to play big and not waste my time on small things.
Normal personality development is associated with an understanding of the difference between a real and an ideal goal (K. Levin believed so). The correct reaction to the specific results of one’s activities helps to avoid a situation where the ideal goal seems to cancel the real one. An arrogant person is “doomed” to success in the sense that he is ready to interpret any real result in his favor. But the chances of objective success only decrease from this.
The internal conflict manifests itself especially clearly in talented people with an inflated level of aspirations. They attribute any success to themselves, and failure to circumstances, consistently ruining their talent.
A classic example of this is the story of the violinist Efimov, with which F. M. Dostoevsky’s story “Netochka Nezvanova” begins. Efimov was a mediocre clarinetist in the home orchestra of a landowner. Having met an Italian musician, Efimov began to learn to play the violin from him, demonstrating extraordinary abilities. The landowner, having learned about this, gave Efimov 300 rubles (very big money at that time) so that he would go to St. Petersburg to study. Having squandered his money in taverns, Efimov began playing in provincial orchestras and, finally, having completely sunk, ended up in St. Petersburg. There Efimov met the beginning violinist B„ with whom he began to live as a hanger-on.
“But,” said B., “I could not help but be surprised at the strange nature of my friend. A desperate, feverish struggle of convulsively tense will and internal impotence was taking place before me. The unfortunate man had been so satisfied for seven whole years with only dreams of his future glory that he did not even notice how he had lost the most original thing in our art, how he had lost even the very original mechanism of the matter. Meanwhile, in his disordered imagination the most colossal plans for the future were constantly being created. Not only did he want to be a first-class genius, one of the first violinists in the world; Not only did he already consider himself such a genius, but, moreover, he also thought of becoming a composer, not knowing anything about counterpoint. But what amazed me most,” added B., “was that in this man, with his complete powerlessness, with the most insignificant knowledge of the technique of art, there was such a deep, such a clear and, one might say, instinctive understanding of art... One day B. remarked to him in the most meek manner that it was not bad for him not to neglect his violin too much, so as not to wean himself off his instrument; then Efimov became completely angry and announced that he would purposely never touch his violin, as if imagining that someone would beg him to do so on his knees. Another time a friend needed B. to play at a party, and he invited Efimov. This invitation infuriated Efimov, he passionately declared that he was not a street violinist and would not be as vile as B. to humiliate noble art by playing in front of vile artisans who would not understand anything about his playing and talent.”
W. James owns the original formula of human self-respect:
Self-Esteem = Success/Expectation
Let’s say two students got a “B” on the exam, but the first one expected a “Five”, and the second - a C. Their “fraction” of self-esteem will be different: the first will be dissatisfied (4/5), and the second will be delighted (4/3).
The aspiration level effect in the light of self theory provides an explanation for this. The level of aspiration reflects the intrapersonal conflict between two tendencies: the desire for success and the avoidance of failure.
Each specific result is situational. But the individual’s attitude towards him is not situational. A generalized assessment of what has been done is formed. By lowering the level of aspirations after failure, a person gets the opportunity to look realistically at his ideal goal. You should strive for it through real work. Then any advancement, any success will strengthen what is called the need for achievement. Pushkin owns the following words: “Misfortune is a good school, but happiness is the best university.” Hoppe wrote: “Changes in the level of aspiration become fully understandable only when we turn to large, all-encompassing personal goals that go beyond tasks. They relate to the self-awareness of the subject, which, in contrast to the level of aspirations related to an individual action, is called the “level of the subject’s “I”.
The conflict between what is available and what is needed in a particular case acts as a source of formation of a person’s level of aspirations. And that, in turn, is connected with the self-esteem of the individual, with the “potential difference” between the present “I” and the promising (possible, idealized) “I”. The inability of the “I” to self-improvement is painful, therefore, in such a situation, the action of defense mechanisms is activated. But this does not increase real success. The readiness of the individual to grow and ennoble the “I” with the help of a moving level of aspirations is realized through an active and realistic transition from one self-esteem to another in accordance with actual successes.
As the wisdom says, those who want to do something look for opportunities, and those who don’t want to do something look for an explanation.
The level of complexity of the goals and objectives that a person sets for himself subsequently determines the level of his aspirations. The more complex the goal, the higher the level of aspiration will be. Moreover, it is not only the situation that determines this level.
It also depends on the nature of the person himself, on what goals he sets for himself: high or low. Since in this case the level of aspiration acts as a characteristic of a person’s personality, the strength of his character, this certainly influences both his behavior and relationships with others.
According to the level of aspirations, all people are divided into three categories:
- with an adequate level of aspirations;
- with an inflated level;
- with a low level.
With an adequate level of aspirations a person chooses goals for himself that correspond to his real capabilities. They can be both difficult and easy, but such people know for sure that they have the strength and capabilities to realize their plans.
Such an assessment of oneself, one’s capabilities and the surrounding reality is the best option, since a person can correlate his desires and capabilities, bringing his activities into a harmonious state. And this is important, because when you clearly know what and how to do, you want to turn all your ideas and plans into reality.
With an inflated level of aspirations the goals chosen by an individual actually always exceed his capabilities. However, when setting such a goal, he is not aware of this, and therefore, when he receives a negative result, everyone around him is to blame, but not him.
And such people often refer to unfortunate circumstances, so to speak, “the moon was in the wrong phase, so everything went wrong.”
They consider criticism from others to be unfounded and unfair, and assessment from outsiders is biased, so they perceive everyone with hostility, which leads to many small and large conflicts.
With a low level of aspirations goals, on the contrary, are much lower than human capabilities. This is explained simply. A low level of aspirations is the result of low self-esteem and self-doubt, therefore, when such people set goals, they, as it were, play it safe in order to avoid possible failures and failures.
So, for example, a student, in order not to lose himself in the eyes of the teacher, if he is not confident in himself, will choose an easier task in order to know for sure that he can cope with it.
Of course, the adequacy of self-esteem has a huge impact on the level of aspirations.
People with high self-esteem naturally have a consistently high level of aspirations, while people with low self-esteem have a low level of aspirations.
Moreover, for the second category, the successes achieved by them are not an incentive to increase the difficulty of the chosen goals and paths to achieve, and there are even cases where success relaxes, and people begin to choose even simpler goals for themselves, so as not to “bother” too much about what they want to accomplish. how to achieve it.
In addition, the level of aspirations is associated with the characteristics of the human nervous system and with its reaction to the difficulties that arise in the process of life. A weak nervous system most often gives rise to an increased level of anxiety and, as a result, a state of panic when faced with situations that are even slightly beyond the scope of everyday life.
They start rushing around, looking for different ways to solve the problem, and having found them, they don’t know which one to choose and try to do everything at once, which, in turn, creates panic and confusion in the head. The outcome of the case is, of course, not ideal.
If a person has a stable nervous system and does not panic when faced with problems, but consistently and systematically solves them, then the result will certainly be quite high.
The properties of temperament also play an important role here. Introverts naturally have higher-than-average aspirations, while extroverts have this level that corresponds to reality.
And, knowing these points, you can easily manage your team or business partners.
LEVEL OF PERSONAL ASPIRATIONS(English) personallevelofaspiration) - pursuit to achieve goals of the degree of complexity that a person considers himself capable of. The basis of the Level of aspirations of an individual is such an assessment of one’s capabilities (see Self-concept), the preservation of which has become for man need.
Level of personality aspirations, which refers to achievement in certain types and areas of activity (for example, in sports, music, etc.) or human relations (the desire to take a certain place in a team, in friendly, family or industrial relations, etc.), called private. The basis of this U. p. l. lies self-esteem in the relevant field .
Level of personality aspirations can wear more general character, that is, relate to many areas of human life and activity, and above all to those in which his mental and moral qualities are manifested. The basis of this U. p. l. lies a holistic assessment of oneself as an individual.
The concept of U. p. l. was introduced TO.Levin and his students. It has been shown that U. p. l. in experimental conditions, it is formed under the influence of success or failure in activity, however, the decisive factor in its formation is not the objective success or failure itself, but the subject’s experience of his achievements as successful or unsuccessful (see. Achievement motive).
U.p.l. m.b. adequate individual's capabilities and inadequate(underestimated, overestimated). Inflated U. p. l. may become a source affect of inadequacy. When raising children, it is important to take into account the characteristics of the educational system, since its compliance with the child’s capabilities is one of the conditions for the harmonious development of the individual. Its inconsistency is the source of various conflicts the child both with other people and with himself, which can lead to deviations in personality development (see. Affective children,Children's claims).
LEVEL OF CLAIMS- a concept introduced by K. Lewin to designate an individual’s desire for a goal of such complexity that, in his opinion, corresponds to his abilities. Corresponds to achievements in a certain type of activity and a certain area of communication, which a person expects when assessing his abilities and capabilities.
Characterizes:
1) the level of difficulty, the achievement of which is the general goal of a series of future actions - an ideal goal;
2) the subject’s choice of the goal of the next action, formed as a result of experiencing the success or failure of a number of past actions - the level of aspirations at the moment;
3) the desired level of self-esteem of the individual, - the level of I.
This education, closely related to the self-esteem of the individual, is formed under the influence of subjective experiences of success or failure in activity.
The level of aspirations can be adequate, that is, consistent with the individual’s abilities, and inadequate - underestimated or overestimated. (-> claim: level).
The desire to increase self-esteem in conditions when a person is free to choose the degree of difficulty of the next action leads to a conflict of two tendencies:
1) increase aspirations in order to achieve maximum success;
2) reduce them to avoid failure.
The experience of success (failure), arising as a result of achieving (non-achieving) the level of aspirations, entails its shift to the area of more difficult (easy) tasks. A decrease in the difficulty of the chosen goal after success or an increase in it after failure - an atypical change in the level of aspirations - indicates an unrealistic level of aspirations or inadequate self-esteem.
People who have a realistic level of aspirations are distinguished by self-confidence, persistence in achieving goals, greater productivity, and critical assessment of what has been achieved. Inadequate self-esteem can lead to extremely unrealistic, inflated or understated aspirations. In behavior, this is manifested in the choice of goals that are too difficult or too easy, in increased anxiety, lack of self-confidence, in the tendency to avoid competitive situations, in the uncritical assessment of what has been achieved, in the error of the forecast, etc.
Every person, regardless of marital status and status in society, sets goals and strives to achieve them. The goals are different, and their degree of difficulty depends only on confidence and perseverance. In psychology this is called personality aspiration. This is what a person recognizes himself as worthy of.
It contains tasks that help a person conduct self-analysis and evaluate the adequacy of actions.
Self-assessment of personal qualities
In the process of life, a person evaluates skills, abilities, experience, and opportunities. By comparing ourselves with others, we satisfy our own desires:
own improvement;
pursuit of a goal;
curiosity.
Self-esteem makes it possible to see strengths and weaknesses and choose appropriate behavior options in life's realities.
A person evaluates his own behavior based on two components:
emotional - a person determines how he himself relates to his own character traits, habits, behavior and other personality traits;
cognitive - learns about oneself from friends, relatives, colleagues, ill-wishers.
American psychologist James W. derived the following formula for self-esteem: the ratio of success to the degree of aspiration.
Success is an established fact of some result, the solution of a given task. The degree of claims in this option is the goal of future processes in an ideal form. Based on the formula, it can be seen that there are two ways:
reduce the level of claims;
increase the efficiency of processes.
Psychologists note that the level of aspirations is inextricably linked with self-esteem.
The discrepancy between real forces and claims leads to the fact that a person judges himself and his own behavior incorrectly. Because of this, a decline in emotional strength and breakdown appears, and anxiety increases. This leads to underestimation of one’s own value and failure of one’s plans.
How to set the level of aspiration?
This term and its concept were derived by K. Levin together with his followers. They found that the formation of the Level of aspiration is influenced by the success or failure of the company. The main reason for his statement is not success or failure as an objective object, but a person’s experiences as a result of achieving a goal or its failure.
Reaching one level or another, a person goes through three stages:
level of difficulty - one goal is determined, which becomes part of a chain of future movements;
choosing the next action that will lead to the final result. The option chosen depends on the success or failure of the former actions.
, which the individual desires.
If a person is faced with choosing the degree of difficulty of each process, the level of personal aspiration shifts to the zone of easier or more labor-intensive tasks. It arises as a result of the successful or unsuccessful achievement of a previous goal. If a person is afraid that he will fail again, he tends to lower his aspirations.
Differences U.p.l. must be remembered when raising children, since harmonious things are possible only with an adequate level of aspirations. The slightest discrepancy with reality leads to conflict situations, aggression, isolation or other deviations.
Claims in light of real possibilities
American psychological scientists have developed a theory according to which individuals who are motivated to successfully complete a goal set tasks that they will complete successfully. Such people are courageous, determined and strive to achieve success in any situation. They are able to mobilize their own internal resources and focus only on achieving their goals.
People who expect failure from any action behave completely differently. Their main goal is to avoid failure. People who are set up to fail from the very beginning are unsure of their actions. They don't believe in their own strength. Expecting criticism, they take every step with caution. As a result, they do not enjoy their actions and do not believe in possible success.
We can say that they have a realistic level of personality aspiration. People preparing for failure most often have high or low aspirations. In behavior, unrealistic aspirations are manifested by the choice of labor-intensive or easy tasks, uncertainty and anxiety. Such people avoid competitive moments, they make mistakes more often and are not able to critically evaluate the result obtained.
How to determine yours?
The level of aspiration can only be determined with the help of an experienced psychologist or specially designed tests. It is worth defining this characteristic if life is clearly not working out, the set goals remain unachieved.
By conducting an analysis, you can determine whether the level of aspirations coincides with the level of personal qualities. In accordance with the results, you will have to either lower the bar of aspirations or change certain personality traits. In any case, this is a long journey and you need to be prepared for it.
March 1, 2014The first person to seriously study the level of aspirations was the American psychologist F. Hoppe. He interpreted the level of aspirations as “a set of sometimes vague, sometimes more precise expectations, goals and claims for the subject’s own future achievements that shift with each achievement.” The reason for highlighting the concept of “level of aspiration” was a phenomenon discovered by the American psychologist T. Dembo; She, setting unattainable or difficult to achieve goals for the subject, stated that the individual outlines “an easier task, which is an approximation to the original goal that the person wants to achieve in stages.”
Level of aspiration- this is the desire to achieve goals of the degree of complexity that a person considers himself capable of. In psychology, the level of aspiration is understood, on the one hand, as the level of difficulties, overcoming which is the goal for the subject, and on the other hand, the desired level of self-esteem of the individual (level of self-image).
The level of claims is characterized by:
1) the level of difficulty, the achievement of which is the overall goal of a series of future actions (ideal goal);
2) the subject’s choice of the goal of the next action as a result of experiencing the success or failure of a number of past actions (the level of aspirations at the moment);
3) desired level of self-esteem (level I).
The level of a person’s aspirations is formed under the influence of success or failure in activity. At the same time, the decisive factor in establishing the level of aspirations is a person’s experience of the results of his activities. An individual’s assessment of the degree of success or failure of his own actions is not strictly linked to a specific result. If a person achieves or exceeds the intended goal, the action is considered a success; if the performance does not achieve the goal, it is considered a failure. It follows from this that the same result can be both successful and unsuccessful - depending on the level of claims of the present moment. The experience of success (or failure) that occurs in a person as a result of achieving (or not achieving) a goal entails a shift in the level of aspirations to the area of more difficult tasks (or easier ones). It has been found that following success, the level of aspirations increases, sometimes remains unchanged, but never decreases. After failure, it decreases, may remain unchanged, but never increases.
If a person reduces the difficulty of the chosen task after success or increases it after failure (an atypical change in the level of aspirations), then they speak of an inadequate level of aspirations. Lack of self-confidence, fear of failure, and uncritical assessment of what has been achieved are indicators not only of an inadequate level of aspirations, but also of inadequate self-esteem. Inadequate self-esteem can lead to extremely unrealistic (inflated or underestimated) aspirations.
People who have an adequate level of aspirations are distinguished by confidence, perseverance in achieving goals, greater productivity, and criticality in assessing what has been achieved compared to people whose level of aspirations is inadequate to their abilities and capabilities. The discrepancy between a person’s aspirations and real capabilities leads to the fact that he begins to evaluate himself incorrectly, his behavior becomes inadequate, emotional breakdowns occur, increased anxiety, etc. It follows from this that the level of aspirations is closely related to an individual’s self-esteem and motivation to achieve success in various types of activities.
According to the theory of motivation for achieving success in various types of activities, developed by American scientists D. McClelland and D. Atkinson, people motivated for success set goals for themselves, the achievement of which they clearly regard as success. They strive to achieve success in their activities at any cost, they are courageous and decisive, and expect to receive approval for actions aimed at achieving their goals.
People motivated to avoid failure behave completely differently. For them, the explicit goal of activity is not to achieve success, but to avoid failure. A person who is initially motivated to fail displays self-doubt, does not believe in the possibility of achieving success, is afraid of criticism, and does not enjoy activities in which temporary failures are possible.
Those who are focused on achieving success are able to correctly assess their capabilities, successes and failures, and adequately evaluate themselves (an adequate level of aspirations is revealed). On the contrary, people who are focused on failure evaluate themselves inadequately, which, in turn, leads to inadequate aspirations (inflated or underestimated). In behavior, this is manifested in the selection of difficult or too easy goals, increased anxiety, lack of self-confidence, a tendency to avoid competition, uncritical assessment of what has been achieved, erroneous forecasts, etc.
The level of aspiration can be private if it relates to the achievement of goals in certain areas of activity or interpersonal relationships. The level of aspirations can be general in nature if it relates to many areas of a person’s life and activity, in which, first of all, his mental and moral qualities are manifested.
